Understanding computer hardware is not only about comparing devices or chasing more raw power. This article connects computing power, storage, internet networking, and IT security to offer clearer reference points for everyday technical choices.
AI Mention: Article created by the author from recordings, structured by AI, reviewed and corrected by the author, then voiced by AI.
Understanding computer hardware is not only about comparing devices or chasing more raw power. It also means connecting computing power, storage, internet networking, and IT security.
This article goes back to a few simple reference points, from mechanical systems to electronics, to make everyday technical choices clearer and grounded in practical understanding.
Dense books that leave a mark
About fifteen years ago, I read foundational books of more than 500 pages, written by real pioneers in computer science. In particular, there was one author, one of the founders of computing in the 1970s, someone who invented many programming languages and hardware systems at the time.
When we look back at history, we remember that computing went through several phases: first, there were punch cards, huge server rooms, and a form of computing power that could almost be described as “mechanical.” Then came a period where mechanics were combined with electricity, followed by the era of electronics.
From mechanics to electronics: the example of hard drives
We still have hard drives today. The cheapest ones are systems with mechanical arms, spinning platters, rotation speeds… and over time, we also saw the evolution toward much faster, more “electronic” storage media.
We gradually moved from mechanics to electronics at the hardware level.
And in a way, IT security follows the same logic: there is a hardware dimension and a software dimension. There is electronics, and then there is an interface, software, and usage.
A major evolution: more power for less money
The computing power that can be obtained today, at much lower costs, has become enormous.
There was a rule that some computer scientists still remember by name: a “law” stating that every X years (10 years, 20 years, etc.), computing power doubles. This law was later challenged and debated: at first it seemed true, but in reality, deployed computing power has increased by much more than double over periods of 10, 15, or 20 years.
So by 2030, we will be dealing with vastly greater computing power available online and at home, for those who can afford the hardware.
A simple example: compare today’s mobile phones to a computer from the 1990s.
Personally, in 1990, my family gave me a computer: that is when I discovered typing on a keyboard after using a typewriter. And when you compare the two eras, it becomes obvious: we moved from mechanics to electronics, and computing power keeps increasing.
Artificial intelligence: a new stage in hardware usage
Given the evolution of artificial intelligence models, which feed on all legally accessible knowledge and on the entirety of available information, it becomes very interesting to use AI in terms of skills and knowledge.
At present, I do not know anyone whom I have heard criticize artificial intelligence by saying “this is not a revolution,” “there is nothing new here,” or “it has no value.” In concrete terms, we can clearly see that computing power and artificial intelligence have completely transformed the way we use our devices: phones, tablets, computers, and televisions.
Televisions, energy, and “queries”: a change of scale
If you think about cathode-ray televisions (from the 1950s to the 1980s–90s), they were televisions “with tubes,” heavy equipment. Today, everything is electronic.
It may consume more electricity, and indeed we may need more energy today than before. But there are also many solutions to produce energy.
And there is a real debate: how to produce the best possible hardware that consumes the least amount of energy, while delivering acceptable results in response to a query.
This leads us to an interesting point: in the past, we talked about Google queries, the basic approach of the 2000s. That era is over. Today, you can write four, five, or even ten paragraphs for a single query to an AI conversational agent.
Technically, if I remember correctly, we can speak of an “assertion”: something from which we expect a result, without knowing exactly what it will be, with several possible outcomes.
IT security: a reality that becomes frightening once understood
I have briefly addressed the hardware aspect: over 20 to 40 years, we moved from mechanics to electronics.
Regarding IT security, when you read a 500-page book on the subject, the last thing you want to do is connect a computer to the Internet.
Because you realize one thing: it is not possible to be perfectly secure on the Internet with a computer.
Let’s frame this with a simple comparison: in real life, even if we live in a democracy, in a peaceful country, well surrounded, nothing prevents an accident from happening. A security issue can come from ourselves, or from our environment.
In computing, it is the same.
In general, hacking does not come from the outside: often, it comes from an internal action, a bad action that we ourselves take.
Or from an interaction that malicious people want to make us perform: they want to lead us into an action that allows them to compromise us.
At first, your system may be secure… and then it is your action that opens the door.
There are also systems that are secure because they are not remotely accessible: they can only be accessed physically.
IT security and physical security follow comparable rules.
And honestly, when you read a security book, you can feel fear.
It is like reading Stephen King: if you do not feel at least some fear, it means you are not entering into the reality of what is being explained.
A security expert is often someone who has more than one fear, because they know the possible scenarios.
Fears around AI and the future
For example, Elon Musk: his company xAI works with a major American defense organization. There is a contract, and Elon Musk himself has expressed fears about the potential use of artificial intelligence.
Here, we enter into considerations about the future, sometimes imagined in science-fiction movies long before they existed, and those fears still remain.
Sometimes, simply thinking about it is enough to say, “okay, this could happen to us.”
“Acting as a reasonable person”: digital caution
It is like the law: no one is supposed to be ignorant of the law.
And when we do not know a subject, we are expected to act as a “reasonable person,” meaning not to take reckless risks.
If you are not trained, you do not go to the dark web or malicious places.
For the past 20 years, since I left student housing, I have no longer downloaded illegally.
Back then, we downloaded MP3s and movies… we had 540p or 720p, and we thought that was already good.
Today, we talk about SD (1080p), HD 2K, FHD 4K, and even UHD 8K.
4K, 8K: useful or marketing?
8K—the day it truly makes sense, we will talk about it again.
In my opinion, that will not be for another 10 or 15 years.
Even today, not all channels properly broadcast standard 1080p definition via Internet television.
So it becomes a matter of computing power, networks, and hardware in order to benefit from quality of service and access online services, knowledge, and skills.
8K will only make sense when Internet infrastructure is consistent with it, and when organizations decide that it is technically possible to broadcast 8K signals at scale.
Currently, I do not even think that Blu-ray discs, even the most modern ones, are truly capable of delivering 8K.
You can obtain something that resembles 8K through graphical upscaling: the player performs processing, the specialized HDMI cable, and the 8K television acts like a computer and also performs processing.
On the audio side, the logic is the same: soundbars, 3.1, 5.1, 7.1… an entire set of “home cinema” protocols.
Personally, I like good sound quality, but not loud sound.
The opposite of movie theaters: in cinemas, the sound quality is excellent, but sometimes it hurts your ears.
It has happened to me to go to the cinema with earplugs and leave with tinnitus.
It is dangerous, like nightclubs.
Leaving with tinnitus is very unpleasant, and recovery can take time.
Consoles: consumption, usage, and personal choices
So, to come back to the interest of 4K: today, buying a 4K television—apart from wanting to say “I have a 4K TV”—well… you have to see how long it will last. 10 years? 15 years? 20 years?
And above all: does the infrastructure and the content follow?
I am not even sure that all consoles are compatible with “native 4K.” I know that hardware performs graphical upscaling, so yes, you can get impressive images.
But regarding game consoles, personally, I do not own any.
Because I find that we play too many war-based games. Where are the peaceful games?
If it is to play the latest Battlefield or Call of Duty, I am no longer interested.
I find Nintendo quite good. A Switch has lower graphics than the latest consoles, but PlayStation and Microsoft consoles consume enormous amounts of electricity, whereas the Nintendo Switch is deliberately technologically “aligned” with a more modest, more appropriate choice.
And today, games are more protected on the Internet: piracy is no longer as easy. There is active anti-piracy enforcement, and if you do not have an online account, sometimes you cannot even buy or use certain content.
There will always be piracy, of course, but protection has increased.
You can say it looks worse, but you also have to consider the peaceful aspect: yes, there are war games on Nintendo as well, but I prefer playing Mario, Mario Kart, Super Mario… rather than mentally drowning myself in war games.
To be very honest, I have gone through periods when I was not mentally well. I was doing sports, I was in a kind of explosive state, and I played war video games.
You can have such a period in life, but you must quickly realize that it destroys your mental state to immerse yourself in that hell of war games.
So yes: Nintendo means lower graphic quality, but much lower electricity consumption, acceptable results, and more peaceful games. For that, I respect Nintendo much more.
There is also the Steam Deck: I do not have a personal opinion, I do not know its electricity consumption, but it is very impressive hardware, with remarkable miniaturization. That said, the games offered are still mostly infernal.
The world is dematerializing… and everything goes through the Internet
If you look back to the 1990s, between flip phones or rotary-dial telephone handsets… and what we now hold in our hands… it is almost magical.
You have more computing power in a phone than in a computer that used to be the size of a chest of drawers.
But the real issue is the network: sufficient bandwidth is required, because everything will go through the Internet.
Just like VHS, video cassette, DVD, CD, and Blu-ray stores have disappeared into a dematerialized world: online television, streaming, online content. We live in a world where films, video games, and music increasingly pass through the Internet.
So Internet infrastructure is what will determine whether 4K or 8K truly makes sense.
Otherwise, if you do not have fiber, you can have hardware that performs upscaling and partially compensates for what bandwidth does not allow.
But in both cases, transporting a video, a film, or music via the Internet consumes electricity.
And performing graphical upscaling on the hardware side also consumes electricity.
Conclusion
In summary, the evolution of computer hardware shows a gradual shift from mechanics to electronics, with a massive increase in available computing power at increasingly accessible costs.
This rise in power, combined with the growth of artificial intelligence, is already transforming our everyday uses (phone, computer, television) and changing the scale of what we can ask of a machine, moving from simple “queries” to truly structured interactions.
But this modernization has a downside: everything relies more heavily on the Internet, on network infrastructures, and on processing (streaming, graphical upscaling, AI computation) that also consumes energy.
Hence the idea that we must seek a balance between performance, comfort of use, and sobriety, rather than following marketing escalation alone (4K, 8K, maximum power, etc.).
Finally, IT security remains a central and worrying subject: as in real life, risk does not come only from “outside,” but also from behaviors, mistakes, and actions that we are sometimes encouraged to take.
Understanding security means accepting that we will never be 100% protected, but that we can significantly reduce risks by remaining cautious, informed, and clear-sighted about the limits of both the digital and the physical worlds.
Reference: Computer hardware
Reference: artificial intelligence